Many are awaiting possession, and even construction, of their houses years after paying the developer
Nearly everyone dreams of owning a house in Mumbai but the number of homebuyers and tenants that have seen their hopes dashed is a cautionary tale for others. Many are awaiting possession, and even construction, of their houses years after paying the developer. Others, like slum dwellers and tenants who opted for redevelopment, moved to temporary accommodation but remain stuck there even after years, for they haven't got the promised homes.
DNA is launching a series to bring out the stories of people who have seen their housing dreams sour.
Shyam Gupta is one of them. Gupta vacated his Worli hutment in 2007 after he was promised a larger and newer home at the same location. But 10 years after he moved out of his 10x10 shack, his 269-square-foot home in south Mumbai is still not ready. He has been staying on rent in Mira Road.
Gupta is in the company of hundreds of other tenants who consented for their slums in Maryam Nagar, which falls in Coastal Regulatory Zone, to be razed and rebuilt as towers.
But they never got to move back after they vacated the premises.
The redevelopment project Gupta and his neighbours had agreed to in 2003 was initiated by Akshay Sthapatya Private Limited. Currently, the site houses transit camps.
Many of Gupta's neighbours were made to leave Worli even before 2007. Most haven't been able to return as their houses are not ready. The developer, Akshay Sthapatya, claims they couldn't start the work for about four years since they did not have an access road to the site of the project. They also blame policy changes for the work getting stuck.
Neeraj Rungta, the company's director, said, "There were 1,500 tenants and 1,100 of these were eligible to get new homes. We first constructed a proper bridge structure to have access to the area. Then we constructed one tower, but then the government changed the policy, and we were required to give tenants bigger homes. So the building constructed was of no use. We have converted it into a transit camp."
Another tenant, Ramlal Pal, vacated his house in 2014. He has been given a home in the transit camp built on the land where his house once stood. "I am lucky that my house was brought down only recently. There are many who left in early 2000s and we don't even know where they are now. My transit accommodation is good. But in most cases, the transit camp is crumbling. The developer stopped giving rent to tenants. After we protested and had a series of meetings with them and the government authorities, we started getting the rent back," said Pal.
According to Rungta, there has been so many policy flip-flops that the project remains incomplete. "Because the land falls under Coastal Regulatory Zone, my project has not got extra FSI. Whatever FSI I have will be used up in constructing homes for the existing tenants. I will get no money. I am hoping that the current government makes it a point to provide housing for all. I may get some relief. As of now, I don;t have any sale component. The entire area will be used for construction of rehabilitation buildings," said Rungta.
Tomorrow, we are going to review the situation of tenants who had to vacate their buildings for redevelopment.
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